In An Instant
by devilwithanewdisguise
Summary: Bella Swan has the job she always wanted. She landed a four novel deal with one of the largest publishing houses in the nation. But what happens when she runs out of ideas after her second novel? She sets out a plan to find her inspiration.
1. Prologue

Prologue

They say write what you know, but the truth is I've exhausted my wealth of knowledge on my last two novels. My publisher has given me a 30 day deadline and at the end of that time I have to hand them something worth publishing. It's been a year since I've written anything. Every time I try it never comes out right or it sounds too cliché. I'll admit, my name is Isabella Swan and I have a case of writers' block. They say admitting you have a problem is the first step to overcoming your problem, right? People seek adventure, yearn for romance, and anticipate suspense. How am I supposed to take them on an adventure when the furthest I've lived from my little hometown of Forks, Washington was Seattle? How am I supposed to make them fall in love with the characters when I've never been in a relationship where I can truly say I was in love? How am I supposed to keep them at the edge of their seat with suspense if I've never faced any of my fears? This was going to be the longest 30 days of my life. All I know is that if I'm ever going to get this novel written I'm going to have to make some major changes in my life starting now.

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><p>AN: Okay, so I hope you like how I started this off. I came up with this idea while half asleep, lol. It's going to take me a while to update, and that's going to depend on when I get the chance to write. I'm so swamped with school right now. Reading on top of reading on top of homework on top of reading on top of tests on top of projects on top of reading on top of reading. You see how much I have to read, and it's all scholarly stuff, bleh! I feel like I don't have enough time for anything. Anywho I'll update as soon as I can :)


	2. As A Blonde

A/N: I do not mean to infringe. Everything Twilight related belongs to Stephanie Meyer. I just get to put her characters in my own twisted little world.

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><p>Chapter One<p>

"Tell me why you're doing this again Bella?" Angela was my best friend in the world but she couldn't understand my logic and to some extent neither could I.

"I told you, I need to make some changes in my life. Take some risks, overcome my fears. This is just the first step. I need to do this if I'm ever going to get a novel written." I looked at her through the mirror as I started to apply the bleach to my now brown soon to be blonde locks.

"But that still doesn't explain to me why you have to bleach your hair?" I turned around and saw a quizzical look on her face.

"I've always been self-conscious about my appearance, wanting to blend in so that's why I've never done anything drastic like get a tattoo or pierce my nose. I didn't want the attention changing my look would bring, so I just never did. If I want an adventure I have to break out of my comfort zone."

Even though she didn't agree that this was the way to go I saw a little understanding in Angela's eyes. "Okay well if you're serious about this I'll help. What's the next step?"

"My next step is moving out." I said as I turned back to face the mirror.

"I know someone who's subletting their apartment for a couple of months; I could probably give them a call for you."

"Ang, I mean moving out of Forks." I couldn't meet her eyes as I looked in the mirror. I knew this was a surprise for her. It was a surprise for me when I thought of it a few days ago.

"What? Where?"

"California, or New York. Hell, maybe even Miami. Like I said, I need to get out of my comfort zone and going to one of these places will ultimately give me a culture shock. Well at least I hope it will."

"Bella that's crazy. You don't know anyone that lives in those places. What are you going to tell your dad?"

"You're forgetting that Emmett lives in New York." I could see the quizzical look on her face. "Emmett, my half brother."

"Even so that still doesn't tell me how you're going to explain it to your dad. What am I supposed to do without you?"

"You'll be fine Ang. You're moving in with Ben next week. You're going to be busy planning your wedding that you won't notice I'm gone. If you ever do need me I'm just a phone call or text away. I'll be back for the wedding and to do all of the bridesmaid's duties. I wouldn't want to miss your bachelorette party now would I?"

"What are you going to do about a place to live?"

"Emmett has a spare room at his place and agreed to let me stay for a week if I decide to go to New York so it gives me time to look for a place. If I decide to go somewhere else I'll book a hotel until I find a place. Then I'll have my dad ship my things to me once I've found somewhere."

I could see the realization of what was going to happen dawn on her. "When are you leaving?"

"Two days." I avoided her gaze in the mirror knowing that her eyes would be full of unshed tears.

Never in my life have I done anything so rash and to her it must have felt like I was deserting her. I finally dared to turn around and look at her when she stomped out of the bathroom. I heard the front door slam shut and her car start before I let myself shed any tears of my own. I slid down the front of the sink, face in my hands, trying to figure out how I could somehow fix this mess I have made.

It slipped my mind at the reason why I was in the bathroom until my scalp started to burn, and I hastily turned on the shower and washed my hair. When I was done I looked at myself in the mirror and nearly fainted though I got a good scream out before anything happened.

"Bells what's wrong?" I turned to see Charlie in his police uniform huffing in the doorway of the bathroom.

All I could do from breaking down into more tears was turn back to the mirror and point to my hair which resulted in a patchwork of colors from my attempted dye job. There were still strands of brown mixed in with blonde and even some orange.

Step one of Operation Write A Novel was a complete disaster. If I can't even do a simple dye job without almost breaking down, how am I going to survive leaving home without becoming a complete basket case?

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><p>AN: Hey guys! Sorry it took so long for me to post a new chapter. I did have most of it written when I posted the update back in November. A lot of things just happened between then and now. When I went home for Thanksgiving break my grandmother had a stroke on Thanksgiving morning. Then she died the week before I had finals and I wasn't able to go home for the funeral. After that I didn't really feel like writing. Spring semester just started a few weeks ago and I've been trying to get adjusted to my course load and homework. It seems like even though the classes get better the work ends up being more. As of right now I do not have the next chapter written but I will try to get it done soon.

Thanks for reading!


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